Untitled [female nude in a hat seated in a folding chair] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this work, a female nude in a hat seated in a folding chair, with ink and blue pencil on paper. He builds up the form of the figure and the surrounding space through a process of layering, of washing the paper with diluted ink to create tone, then coming back in with more precise lines. I love how the initial washes of ink create these pools of dark tone that allow the figure to emerge from the ground. The lines are so assured, almost casual, but they describe the figure and the surrounding space economically, with a kind of poetic ease. Look at how the pools of ink under the chair suggest the shadow. Then, notice how the lines of the figure are reinforced by blue pencil, which pulls the whole thing together. This piece reminds me of Matisse's line drawings, but with a uniquely Diebenkorn twist. This is a good example of how art is often an ongoing conversation between artists across time. Art doesn't have to be about fixed meanings, but about opening up possibilities.